Wednesday, March 2, 2011

REVIEW: Under the Overpass by Mike Yankoski

FIVE STARS*****

Not many of us in the U.S. have ever prayed, “Lord, please keep the rats, cockroaches, and any other fun little things off us while we sleep tonight.” But through the eyes of author Mike Yankoski, one gets a glimpse into the lives of people who live on the streets across the country who pray that prayer—people whose only meal of the day may just be a trash bag full of throw-away popcorn from a movie theater and a few fast-food packets of relish. This book teaches that “comfort is relative.” For more than five months, two upper-middle class young men, author Mike Yankoski and his friend Sam, took on the challenge of living on the streets in six different cities across the country to truly put their Christian faith into action and to “be fully present in the places where people are most broken.” It was hard to put down the book—I wanted to experience each new adventure that lay ahead for Mike and Sam along with the people they would meet and how God would shine through in each situation. The risk in reading this book, though, is that you will likely be convicted as I was. Mike and Sam didn’t just talk about helping the homeless and experiencing the pain the homeless feel while sipping coffee in a fancy coffee shop—they actually got up and did it. They spent time with the least of these. When was the last time I did that? When was the last time you did that? I think this is a book every Christian should read and share with others, as it truly shows how to put love into action.*I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.